Secrets I Keep
by TARDISTraveller
Summary: When weird weather and UFOs appear at St. Luke's University, it is up to the Doctor, Bill, and Nardole to stop the alien threat. Why is the alien obsessed with secrets? And how will the Doctor make sure it can't learn his?
1. Chapter 1

Secrets I Keep

Chapter One

Bill set her books down on a bench and peeled off the denim shirt she'd been comfortable in all day. Her nose crinkled as she realized how sweaty it was, and how thickly the air wrapped around her bare arms. Even in her St. Luke's tank top she was barely cool enough. With a shake of the head, she tied the shirt around her waist and kept walking.

When she reached the office for her lesson, there was a fan standing by the desk. The Doctor's coat hung over the back of his chair. As Bill took out her pens and notebooks, the Doctor walked in with his white shirt sleeves rolled up.

"Bill," he said, giving her a nod. Before he sat down, he turned up the dial on the fan.

"Do you know why it's so hot?" She asked.

The Doctor shrugged. "Global warming?"

"It's March. This time last year it was still snowing."

The Doctor shrugged again, looking down at his lesson plans. "You've seen how much damage your species does to this planet every day. It's probably sped up its increasing temperatures."

Bill watched him for a minute. He moved slower than usual. Normally, his whole body darted around without a moment's pause, but today his movements were sluggish and his eyes dull.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes," the Doctor replied shortly without looking up from his paperwork. "Just hot."

Bill chuckled and glanced at the fan. "I'm actually kind of cold right now."

The Doctor gestured toward himself. "Lower body temperature. Better suited for cold climates."

"Is that why you came to England?" Bill asked. The Doctor smirked but didn't respond. Bill noticed the sweat covering his forehead and clapped her hands on the desk, standing. "Alright, I think we should skip class today. You need to go cool off before you get a bloody heatstroke."

The Doctor opened his mouth to argue, but closed it without a sound. Bill raised her eyebrows.

"Fine," he said, getting to his feet. "But Nardole's not permitting me in the TARDIS, so…"

"I'll tell him to make an exception."

The Doctor paused on his way to the TARDIS, giving her a strange look.

"Why are you being so protective of me?"

Bill tilted her head. "When your best mate hides the fact that he's blind for a few weeks, it tends to leave an impact." She nudged his arm with a smile. "Someone has to look out for you if you won't do it yourself."

The Doctor replied with a genuine smile before heading into the TARDIS. Bill shut off the fan and grabbed her books before heading home for the night.

. . .

Bill sat on her bed with her laptop leaned on her knees and a jar of Ben and Jerry's beside her. As she licked the mint chocolate chips off of her spoon, she leaned closer to the screen.

"Weird weather. Crop circles. UFOs, that looks promising."

Bill clicked into a thread from some students at the university, each one discussing a booming sound and then the blinding green light of a spaceship. She set her spoon in the ice cream tin and scrolled faster. A smile slowly made its way across her face.

. . .

"Boom," Bill said, dropping a roll of papers and charts onto the Doctor's desk.

He wore usual jacket, the weather finally permitting sensible March clothing, and a curious frown.

"What's this?" He asked.

Bill unrolled one of the papers, showing him the thread of comments she'd read and a map of the university. In black ink, she'd circled all of the UFO sightings.

"It's more weird stuff happening. I knew it wasn't just global warming."

The Doctor looked through a few of the papers and smiled, unimpressed. "Humans are always trying to claim 'ET sightings'. Especially students."

Bill held up a finger and pulled out one of the other papers.

"But this is the only time a UFO around here has been seen by over ten different people. Look; this thread just started last week; right around the time the weather started heating up."

The Doctor stood slowly, shaking his head. "That was just an abnormal little glitch. Happens everywhere. The weather is fine now."

Bill pursed her lips. The Doctor sighed.

"Okay, I'll look into it. But I'm telling you, if there was an alien-besides me and Missy and Nardole-here, then I'd know about it. Full stop."

Bill quirked an eyebrow. "Alright. If you say so."

The Doctor gave her an assured smile. "Now, can we get into today's lesson? I've got a good one: Quantum mechanics."

Bill let herself forget her mind's wanderings for the duration of their lesson, but something told her it wasn't over. Perhaps it was the strange look in the Doctor's eye that told her he was hiding something. Or perhaps it was the UFO she saw flying with green lights in the corner of her eye during their lesson.

Whatever it was, Bill resolved to find out the truth. Wasn't that what an inquiring mind was for?

. . .

When Bill next had a lesson with the Doctor, she carried not only her brilliant essay on quantum mechanics which she was sure would make a high first, but also some more indisputable proof that something was going on. Instead of lugging around charts and graphs, this time she came armed with her phone. Just the other night she had recorded strange sounds, similar to whispers but more inhuman. The Doctor would probably write it off as a cat or an injured fox.

Bill shook her head with a smile as she climbed the heavy wooden steps. Her shoes echoed louder than normal, and she realized that the Doctor and Nardole weren't bickering like they usually did on Monday nights. Nardole must already have gone to the Vault for the night, she thought.

She hardly bothered to knock on the door before she squeaked it open, pulling out her phone.

"Doctor, I've got something to show…"

She looked around the office and found it empty. No, wait; she looked around the desk and her phone slipped out of her hand.

The Doctor lay motionless on the floor, Nardole a few feet away lying on his side. Bill hurried to them, feeling her mind go blank.

"Doctor?" She called with a small voice, shaking his shoulders. He didn't stir. Holding her breath, she placed two fingers on his neck. Two beats pulsed in a normal rhythm, and his chest rose as she watched him with wide eyes.

Relieved, Bill sat back on her heels and checked Nardole as well. He was in the same condition. Totally knocked out, but not in any immediate danger.

She looked back at the Doctor and put a hand back on his shoulder.

"Doctor? Can you hear me?"

She bit her lip and looked him over. He didn't seem to be injured; certainly nothing that would have rendered him unconscious. Bill was at a loss. Their lessons hadn't really covered medical care; especially in the absence of any obvious diagnosis.

Thankfully, a few seconds later, the Doctor began stirring. He groaned quietly as his eyebrows furrowed, head shifting toward Bill. She felt the air come back into her lungs.

"Oh thank God," she breathed.

He opened his eyes and ran a hand over his face. With her help, he slowly sat up. Bill put a supportive hand on his back.

"Doctor," she said steadily. "Do you know what happened?"

The Doctor pinched the bridge of his nose. "There was a green light and then…"

His eyes widened. "Nardole!"

Bill tightened her hold on his shoulders. "He's fine. Same as you. Just...sleeping."

The Doctor examined Nardole, who woke up a moment later. Bill stared at the Doctor and wouldn't look away until he met her eyes.

"Okay," he relented. "Something's up."

"Something...alien?" Bill asked.

The Doctor got to his feet. "Almost definitely."

Nardole stood beside the other two and shook his head to clear it. "I don't know about you, but I could do with a cuppa."

The Doctor grabbed Nardole's arm as he turned to the door.

"No one should go anywhere until we figure out what it is and how dangerous it can be,"

The Doctor said sternly.

Nardole and Bill shared a look.

"You think it can really be that harmful?" Nardole asked.

"It made us fall unconscious without even being in the same room. It could have been studying us. All of our secrets out in the open like that. Could be a field day for a telepath."

Bill felt shivers up her spine. "Are there aliens that can do that? Read minds? Study people without being near them?"

The Doctor quirked an eyebrow. "Of course."

She took a deep breath. "I'm with Nardole. I'm gonna need a cuppa for this one."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Once they were all seated at the desk with the tea they'd travelled as a group to make, they began investigating. Nardole had a computer on his lap, scrolling through pages upon pages of conspiracy sites as Bill showed the Doctor the recordings on her phone.

"It was sort of like a cat," she said as it played again. "But more...human. Or 'humanoid' I guess." She couldn't help but smile. "Still getting used to actually using this sci-fi lingo."

The Doctor played the sound again and his eyes widened. "Where was this?"

She shrugged, putting her phone away as she thought it over.

"I was leaving the canteen. So somewhere around that back staircase. Sort of near where the puddle was."

A somber look flickered on her face, but she hid it before either of her companions could see. When she next looked up, the Doctor was halfway to the door.

"Oi!" Bill called, throwing her hands out. "What happened to doing things together?"

The Doctor waited for her and Nardole to join him before closing the office door and leading them downstairs.

"Nardole, do you still carry that torch?" The Doctor asked, pounding down the steps as quickly as possible.

When they reached the ground floor, Nardole reached into his jacket and pulled out a small red torch. He flipped it up in the air and smirked. "Got it."

Bill held up her phone. "I've got one on my phone."

The Doctor met both of their eyes with a stern frown. "Okay. We're going to go outside. And we're going to find out who's been visiting our university."

Nardole nodded fervently. "Yes. That definitely sounds like a plan."

"And to do that, we're going to have to split up."

Nardole's face dropped. "Sir?"

Bill put up a staying hand. "Wait, Doctor, seriously? Is that a good idea?"

"It's telepathic. If we're all in the same area, it might be able to get us all at once," he explained, "but if we split up, at least one of us will be out of its range."

Bill sighed. The plan was logical. But that didn't mean it had any common sense.

"Okay," she relented. "But if we haven't seen anything by nine O'Clock, we should all meet back here. Deal?"

Nardole nodded. "Agreed."

The Doctor opened one of the front doors. "Alright. Bill, you head toward the canteen. Nardole, walk left toward the Vault. I'll go right. If you find anything, shout."

The trio dispersed, going into the night with the light of their torches dancing through the darkness. The wind was nippy and fear had them all in a state of constant agitation, but overall the university seemed still and silent. Without the flurry of students and professors, it was actually relatively peaceful.

The Doctor scanned the air with his sonic screwdriver and then set it back in his inside pocket. He glanced around and watched the path in front of him, lit up by his torch.

"Where are you?" he murmured.

A shadow moved, just at the edge of his light. The Doctor froze.

"I'm here...Doctor." a voice hissed from the darkness.

The Doctor cast his light side to side, but nothing else crossed in front of him. He felt his hair stand on end and adjusted how his sweaty hands held the torch.

"You know me then?" He asked into the night.

A pressure entered his head.

"Timelord...Timelord of Gallifrey."

Movement caught his eye, making him spin around, throwing his light this way and that. A pair of yellow eyes reflected back, just for a second before disappearing. He grit his teeth to keep them from chattering.

"Who are you?" He asked, louder.

The pressure returned to his head.

"Doctor...Doctor!"

The Doctor spun around and his light landed on Bill, standing hardly five feet in front of him. His hand flew to his chest as he got his breathing under control. Bill touched his arm and he jumped.

"Sorry," she said, "I heard your voice."

He swallowed and tried to get his thoughts in order. "Right. Er, let's get back inside. Nardole should be back by now."

. . .

The Doctor sat in his usual office chair wringing his hands. Bill hadn't seen him blink five times since they'd come back inside twenty minutes ago. Softly, she set a cup of tea down on the desk beside him.

"Doctor…"

She bit her lip. "Maybe it's nothing."

The Doctor lowered his brows at her in an unspoken question.

She shrugged. "Maybe it's just students. I know I started all this, but...I don't know. I don't want us to get freaked out for no reason."

Nardole held up a finger. "What about the green light? And me and the Doctor falling asleep earlier?"

Bill shook her head. "I don't know."

An uncomfortable silence overtook the room as they each stared at different spots along the wall. The Doctor picked up his mug with both hands and then resumed staring into space. Finally, he spoke.

"It knew who I was."

Nardole leaned in closer to hear the Doctor's abnormally small voice.

"It knew I was from Gallifrey. It knew I was a Timelord. No one here would know that."

Nardole picked up his own cup of tea. "Well, like Bill said, we shouldn't let ourselves get anxious over nothing."

The Doctor pursed his lips, unconvinced, but didn't reply. He took a large gulp of tea and then set it down, getting to his feet. Slowly, he paced around the room and stretched out his hands, trying to shake off the feeling that he was being watched. Bill gave Nardole a knowing, worried glance before turning back to the Doctor.

"We can look into it more tomorrow. In the daylight," she suggested. "That way it'll be less creepy."

Nardole nodded. The Doctor's shoulders finally seemed to relax. Satisfied, Bill put her bag on her shoulders.

"For now, I've gotta get home," she said.

When she reached the door, the Doctor grabbed her hand.

"Be safe."

She gave him a smile.

"I'll be fine. See you tomorrow."

She disappeared out of the room, leaving the two men staring at the closed door. The Doctor came back to his seat and took another sip of tea.

He could still feel eyes watching him; eyes that could get inside his head. Eyes that knew what he was and, possibly, who he was.

The hair on the back of his neck stood up for the rest of the night.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

By the next afternoon, the eerie feeling had mostly passed. It was a beautiful and bright day at St. Luke's University, a rare occurrence this early in the year. The Doctor wore a faint smile as he went class to class, a physics textbook hugged underneath his arm.

As he strolled across the campus greens to head back to his office, his eye caught Bill's.

"Hey Doctor," she called with a smile. "How're you doing?"

The Doctor let himself grin. "Good. Very good."

"No more signs of aliens, then?" She asked in a hushed tone.

The Doctor glanced around. "Not so far."

Bill clapped him on the arm. "I better get back to the canteen. Later!"

They shared one last smile as they went off in different directions. The Doctor looked around at the students conversing along the path, joking and laughing and gossiping. A good portion of them were his own students, many whom he knew by name and handwriting.

One boy broke away from a few of his classmates and approached the Doctor.

"Hey, Doctor," the boy started excitedly. "I was wondering if I could discuss our last lecture with you. The one about biochemistry? I had a few questions."

The Doctor nodded to the boy. "I'm heading to my office now if you want to chat. I'm free until six."

The boy smiled. "Great. I'll be there in a few minutes."

The Doctor watched him run back to get his books and say goodbye to his friends. A burst of professorly pride danced in his two hearts. He loved it when the students actually seemed to like being here, learning. It was what drew him to Bill when they first met.

Ten minutes later, as the Doctor sat fiddling with a watch on his desk, a knock came to his door. "Come in."

The boy entered, the bag on his shoulder weighing him down. He slunk to the chair opposite the Doctor with a nervous laugh.

"Sorry I took so long," the boy explained, taking out a messy notebook.

The Doctor shook his head. "Not at all. I'm not expecting anyone else today."

The boy's eyes glinted yellow, just for a millisecond. The Doctor blinked and they were back to normal.

"Good," the boy said. His voice sounded almost like velvet.

The Doctor sat up straighter and folded his hands together.

"Now, you wanted to talk biochemistry."

"Yes," the boy continued, sounding almost normal again. "Especially that portion on neurobiology. The chemicals involved in that."

"Ah, serotonin, melatonin...those?"

The boy nodded silently.

The Doctor leaned back and looked the boy over with a quick eye. "Your name is Timothy, correct?"

The boy tilted his head, standing up again. "Yes and no."

He strolled around the space, looking at the various nick nacks that had assembled over the years. The Doctor watched him without blinking.

"Oh, do you go by Tim? Sorry, so many students, so little time."

Timothy smirked, turning the lock on the door. "I have had many names, Doctor. Many looks."

The Doctor got to his feet slowly, a careful eye fixed on 'Timothy'.

"Who are you?" The Doctor asked, forcing his voice to sound tougher than he was.

Timothy looked back at him with those glowing, yellow eyes.

"I, Doctor, am a Secrafura."

Within a fraction of a second, the human boy shifted in a whirl of colors and transformed. In front of the Doctor now stood a tall, almost translucent humanoid alien, with the same yellow eyes.

"What about Timothy? The real Timothy?" The Doctor asked, unconsciously backing up a few paces.

The Secrafura took two steps forward. "Oh, Timothy is fine. Up in the lake district with his family for the weekend. I merely borrowed his likeness from your memory."

The Secrafura's voice sounded like whispers, or hisses. The same sound that had called the Doctor's name last night.

The Doctor's eyes darkened. "How does that work? You're telepathic?"

The alien nodded. "The Secrafura feed on secrets. Hidden thoughts. As long as you give willingly, I will not harm you. We feast on mere copies of information. Your memory will not be compromised."

The Doctor felt his back hit the edge of the bookshelf. He took a breath to calm his rising nerves. The Secrafura still approached, slowly. It was at least a head above the Doctor.

"Oh, Doctor," the Secrafura purred. The Doctor felt its telepathic presence in his mind and built up his walls. "How many secrets you keep. And how good they will taste. Big secrets. Important secrets."

The Doctor glanced to his side. "Yes. Sorry, but those secrets will be staying with me."

The Doctor jumped to the side, but the Secrafura was too fast for him. It caught him around the waist in its slender arms. He tried to push away from it, but the alien was too strong. It pulled him to the floor and held him down by the shoulders.

"Confess and you will not be harmed."

"Not a chance," the Doctor grunted. "You have no idea how dangerous my secrets are."

The Furasecra cocked its head. "No? Then tell me." It pushed him harder into the floor. "Last chance, Doctor. Tell me your secrets. I will find them myself anyway. Nobody is coming to your rescue."

The Doctor smirked. "I liked you a lot better when I thought you were Tim."

The Secrafura grinned and raised its hand. Before the Doctor could react, a heavy force hit his forehead, just above his eye, and his skull was thrown back against the floor. His eyes shut soon after.

. . .

A moment after he lost consciousness, the Doctor felt a pain enter his sleeping mind. It was the Secrafura, breaking down his walls.

The Doctor rebuilt them; tried to reinforce them. But it was useless. The Secrafura easily tore at the scaffoldings, sending waves of headaches and lightning-bolt flashes into his mind as it devoured his secrets.

"Doctor...so alone. So lost."

The Doctor shook his head back and forth, trying to kick the alien out of his head, but the pressure only grew. It broke down another one of his walls and he groaned despite himself.

"You can make this easier for yourself," the Secrafura purred. "Just let me in and you will feel no pain."

The Doctor grunted his negative response. A crash hit his head again. This time he cried out.

"Very well," the creature said simply. "You force my hand, Doctor."

The Doctor grit his teeth as the alien continued to steal his secrets, breaking through his barriers with reckless abandon. Somewhere in the back of his mind, the Doctor heard knocking. He couldn't open his eyes, but he turned his attention to the new sound, trying to ignore the Secrafura for a moment.

"Doctor? I got off work early."

Bill.

The Doctor tried to push through the cotton and find his consciousness again. But the Secrafura had other plans. It smashed down another wall, sending an earthquake through the Doctor's mind. He couldn't help but cry out.

The knocking on the door became a pounding.

"Doctor?!"

Bill's voice was laced with fear. As much as the Doctor wanted to, however, he couldn't quite find his voice. Only incoherent mutterings surfaced.

"This. Bloody. Door."

Each word was enunciated with a rough pound against the door. Finally, on her third try, Bill crashed through the threshold with a hand on her aching shoulder.

Her jaw dropped and she backed against the wall, letting the door shut behind her.

A...something knelt over the Doctor, both of its hands on his head. It was tall and slender, too much so to be human. And the Doctor…

He grunted as his body shuddered on the floor, teeth chattering. Every so often, a sharp jolt would go through him, making him groan and, to Bill's horror, scream.

Bill felt a lump in her throat. But she pushed through her fear and stumbled forward.

"Leave him alone," she said, in a voice that was not quite her own.

The Secrafura raised its head for a second, but turned back almost immediately. It sent another shock, harsher this time, and the Doctor was suddenly left gasping for air, squeezing his eyes shut.

Bill stormed forward.

"Stop! I'll give you what you want. Just stop hurting him."

The Secrafura finally stood, rising to its height three feet above Bill. She swallowed her nerves but felt a small surge of relief. At least the Doctor was safe for now.

The Secrafura peered down at her.

"He would not have been harmed if he had simply relented. He made me use force."

Bill clenched her teeth to keep from responding. She shut her eyes and shook her head.

"Look, what do you want?"

The Secrafura took a step toward her. "Secrets."

Bill shrugged. "I'm an open book. Go ahead. Take my secrets."

"Are you sure?" It asked, cocking its head.

Bill simply nodded in response, her voice lost.

The Secrafura entered her mind and, instead of a labyrinth or a maze, it found a garden. Signs pointed it in the right direction.

Bill's loves; her hopes; her secret music tastes...all were freely available to the Secrafura. It drank and ate as if at a feast.

A few moments later, the alien left Bill's mind. Satisfied, it gave the terrified young woman a genuine smile.

"Thank you, Bill Potts," it hissed.

"Don't mention it," Bill said with a grimace. The creature slunk out of the office and was gone before Bill could blink.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

As soon as the Secrafura had disappeared, Bill dropped to her knees beside the Doctor. He was on his back, breath fast and stunted. Bill shook him by both shoulders.

"Doctor? Wake up," she said, a plea more than an order.

The Doctor's eyelids fluttered as his mind struggled through the fog of unconsciousness. Otherwise, however, he did not stir.

Bill bit her lip and watched him for another moment. Then she shook his arm again.

"Come on Doctor," she murmured, "What did that thing do to you?"

Without anything to distract herself, she thought over the possibilities. What if his brain was damaged? Or he was in some sort of coma? Did Timelords have comas?

Bill shook the questions out of her head. Freaking herself out wasn't going to solve anything. Instead, she focused on what she did know.

"Okay. You're breathing." She placed two fingers on the pulse in his neck. "Your hearts are racing."

The Doctor muttered something and Bill leaned in closer to his face.

"Doctor?"

His eyelids fluttered again. Bill squeezed his hand with both of her own.

"Can you wake up for me?"

His head shifted, eyebrows twitching. When at last his eyes opened, bleary and unfocused, Bill's smile spread across her face.

"Bill," he said, his voice thick.

Bill threw her arms around him. She cradled his head against her shoulder and rocked forward and back, even more relieved than she had imagined she would be. Feeling her nerves give in, she let a few tears fall down her face.

"I thought you might never wake up. Or your brain might've been damaged or something."

The Doctor put a shaky hand on her back.

"I'm alright," he murmured.

They stayed like that for a few moments until the door opened again. This time, a familiar pair of cyborg feet shuffled into the room. Before Bill could raise her head, Nardole's arms had wrapped them both in a bear hug.

When at last Nardole pulled away, he looked from Bill to the Doctor. "Okay. What happened?"

The Doctor sat up straighter, wincing and then trying to hide it with a smile. "I met our monster. He wanted to know some of my secrets."

Nardole nodded. "So you told them to him without a fight and he went on his merry way?" he tried.

The Doctor looked at the floor sheepishly.

Bill said, "Well, not exactly. You know. There were some…hitches."

The Doctor rubbed his temples and groaned, shutting his eyes.

"Sir, are you alright?" Nardole asked, shifting closer. The Doctor batted his hand away.

"Fine. Just a little headache."

Nardole watched him with a frown but didn't reply. "So where's the monster now?"

The Doctor lowered his hands. "Gone. Bill...Bill saved the day."

Nardole smiled at Bill. "Hey hey! Nice."

They high fived.

Bill brushed it off with a shrug. "I just didn't put up a fight. Unlike some people, I don't push people away so much."

The Doctor smirked, but a darkness crept into his eyes. "I couldn't tell my secrets. I know things...dangerous things that I can't tell anyone. Secrets I must keep."

Nardole patted him on the back. "We know, Doctor. You did good."

The Doctor shut his eyes again. "I don't feel so good."

He grunted and brought up a hand to cover his face. Nardole put a hand on his chest and back.

"Why don't you lie back and relax for a mo'?"

'M fine," the Doctor muttered.

"Doctor," Bill added, "That thing was basically torturing you. Let us help out."

The Doctor sighed and shut his eyes, too tired to fight any more. Nardole supported him as he lie back down, and then placed his jacket under the Doctor's head as a pillow.

"Nighty night, Doctor."

"Nighty night, Nardole," the Doctor murmured.

Nardole and Bill gave each other the widest smiles they had ever shared.

. . .

The Doctor leaned back on one of the railings in the TARDIS console room, trying to avoid Bill's sharp eye. Nardole was off on a trip to the canteen to find them some supper, so he had no escape route or punching bag to throw his quick jokes off of. All he had was his his student's crossed arms and close watch, following him along wherever his mind went.

When he made the mistake of looking up, Bill capitalized on it.

"What did we learn today?"

Her eyes held his deer-in-headlights stare without blinking. He pondered asking how she did that, but thought better of it.

"You know I'm your professor, right?" He asked, drifting his eyes toward the console controls. If he could just reach them and mention going on a trip somewhere…

"What did we learn today?"

Bill's voice held a quality he couldn't name. It was caring and powerful at the same time. Young and wise. Terrifying and heartwarming.

"You remind me of someone."

"Who?" Bill relented, too curious to pass up knowledge of the Doctor's past.

He shook his head. "I don't remember. Hey," he pushed away from the railing and went to the handbrake. "I have a wonderful place picked out. Diamonds and jewels from all over the universe."

Bill's eyes sparkled for a second, but her arms remained crossed. Just after the Doctor lifted the brake with a boyish grin, Bill pulled it right back down.

Deflated, the Doctor glanced to the floor.

"Doctor," Bill prodded.

"Okay." He took a deep breath. "I...need to open up a bit more. Not necessarily to shifty aliens."

"Of course not."

He met her eyes and, for once, didn't look away. "But...you. And Nardole."

Bill nodded, satisfied. "Thank you."

She took a step forward and the Doctor instinctively stiffened.

"Hug? Just this once?"

The Doctor relaxed and gave her a small smile. "Okay. Since Nardole isn't here."

Bill pulled him close to herself, burying her face in his shoulder, as he tentatively put his hands on her back. For a moment they stayed just like this. The Doctor even enjoyed it a bit. He felt the weight in his hearts lessen.

Then the TARDIS doors opened.

"Aw, what's this?"

The Doctor flinched back, but Bill held him tighter.

"Doctor," she said firmly. "Come on. You're doing great."

He sighed and opened up one of his arms.

"Come on Nardole. Group…" he sighed again, rolling his eyes. "Group hug."

Nardole joined their embrace with a wide grin. Bill, also, smiled broadly as she held onto her two best friends, safe in the TARDIS from any dangers of Earth or any other planet.

And as they stood there, arms around each other, time seemed to stand still.

The Doctor's lips turned upward, a gentle smile spreading across his face.

 **Thank you so much for reading! Please leave a review if you enjoyed. It means the world to me to hear from you guys.**


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